


Flash

by quartetship



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Inspired by Art, Inspired by Fanart, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-12
Updated: 2016-07-12
Packaged: 2018-07-23 15:53:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7469724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quartetship/pseuds/quartetship
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>It happens in a flash.</i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Flash

**Author's Note:**

> Word doodle inspired by [this lovely artwork](https://twitter.com/cradleghost/status/751212884601036800) by twitter user [@Cradleghost](https://twitter.com/cradleghost). Please give them some love; their art is fantastic!

\--

It happens in a flash.

It's a joke, told after a long day, and Keith actually smiles. Like the tail of a passing comet, it's a brilliant sight, but it doesn't linger. There's a quick quiver of his lips, and then he's smirking, a brief flash of teeth before he shakes his head and it's gone again, but it's enough.

Lance sees it, and he has to see it again. He has to be the one to make it happen.

It happens again, in the blink of an eye.

They're talking on their communication screens, Keith lecturing him like he tends to do, and then Lance’s lion takes a hit. For a few seconds, Keith looks terrified, stammers Lance’s name, and then his brows knit together like he's ready to hurt someone. Only when he's assured that Lance is okay does he find his center again.

Lance sees that too, and his stomach flips in a way that has nothing to do with the impact.

Not long after that, it happens for the third time, and this time it lingers longer than ever before.

They're talking, all of them, over dinner at the castle, and Hunk and Pidge are taking turns imitating the rest of them. Their impressions are strikingly accurate, hilariously true to life, and by the time they're taking a shot at Keith, Lance is laughing so hard he can't see for the tears in his eyes. He can hardly breathe.

But he can feel.

A hand lands on his shoulder, squeezes, and the sound of almost foreign laughter tickles his ears. From the corner of his blurred vision, Lance can see Keith beside him, leaning into his space and clutching his shoulder as he laughs, fighting back tears as well, and never has he looked more relaxed, more human.

Never has he looked more _beautiful._

Butterflies burst to life in Lance's stomach, flutter up into his chest and leave his mouth dry as he clamps it closed. It takes a few minutes this time for the moment to pass, but even after it does, Keith is left glowing, radiating in a way that makes Lance stare, dumbfounded. He has to will himself not to reach out and _touch_ him, to keep his impulsive nature at bay long enough to get a good look at Keith. The way his face looks now, soft and sweet - almost _delicate,_ Lance thinks - leaves him wishing Keith had more reasons to laugh that way. More reasons to s _mile._

Lance realizes that he wants to be every single one of those reasons.

In an instant, he knows what's happened. It's as clear as the sharp and sudden longing he has for Keith’s hands on him again, for the warmth of Keith’s closeness. All at once, Lance understands.

He's in love with Keith. In the span of a second, it dawns on him like a rising, alien sun, and he knows then that nothing will ever be the same. Everything changes, and the universe is a more beautiful place.

And it happens in a flash.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> Find me on [twitter](twitter.com/_quartetship_)!  
> Find me on [tumblr](quartetship.tumblr.com)!


End file.
